Hadassah. A Thought for the Ninth of Ab. Friedlander, Joseph, comp. 1917. The Standard Book of Jewish Verse

Joseph Friedlander, comp. The Standard Book of Jewish Verse. 1917.

A Thought for the Ninth of Ab

By Hadassah


SWINGING low by a garden wall
A flower bent its head,
Only a few its beauty knew,
And the fragrance sweet it shed.

But a wind blew rough on the blossom rare,	5
And its seeds were scattered wide,
Now one finds its bloom, where’er there’s room
On the great green countryside!

So stood the shrine on Zion’s hill,
For Truth’s Temple fair,	10
But all too few its beauty knew—
Men knew not Truth dwelt there.

But came the foe like shattering storm,
And Temple walls laid low,
’Neath weeping skies the ruin lies	15
’Mid wails of mortal woe.

But like windblown blossom then
The precious seeds were blown,
And Truth spread wide on every side
Where’er the seeds were sown!	20